Executive Chef

• T H E  H U N G R Y   T O A D  •

CULINARY MANAGER/ Exec Chef

Location: Boulder, CO — 2543 Broadway

Job type: Full-time

Pay: $90,000 base + performance bonus, based on experience

Start date: TBD

• ABOUT US

The Hungry Toad is Boulder's original British pub — a local institution built on genuine hospitality, a serious beer program, and food we're raising to a new standard for 2027. We're not a chain and we're not fast casual: we're a full-service, scratch kitchen with real craft behind it, looking for a leader who takes the same pride in the plate that we take in the pint.

• THE ROLE

We're looking for a Culinary Manager to lead daily kitchen operations, protect the consistency and quality of our food, and build a well-trained, well-led back-of-house team. This is a hands-on culinary leadership role for someone who cares deeply about doing things properly — precision, consistency, pride in the craft — not just keeping the line moving.

Our recipes and standards belong to the house. We're investing seriously in getting them right — new specifications, refined techniques and structured training, developed with an outside culinary team, rolling out this winter — and we need a Culinary Manager who takes real pride in that distinction: perfecting and safeguarding a standard, not chasing a personal creative agenda. If you find satisfaction in a dish coming off the line exactly right, every time, on every shift, whether or not you're the one who plated it, this role is built for you.

This isn't a rotational posting inside a large chain — it's a genuine leadership seat at one restaurant we're serious about. You'll work as a true partner to our General Manager and ownership, with a real, standing voice in how the kitchen and the business are run, not just a title.

Timing matters here: we want this person in place while our new menu and kitchen standards are still being shaped — not handed a finished plan after the fact. 

• WHAT YOU'LL DO
• Uphold the highest standards of food quality and consistency across every dish, every shift.
• Protect and maintain our recipes and specifications as the house standard — ensuring every plate matches it, regardless of who's on the line.
• Lead, train and develop a back-of-house team, building a culture of craft, accountability and pride in the work.
• Oversee daily kitchen operations — prep, cooking, plating — with an eye for detail and consistency.
• Manage inventory, ordering and vendor relationships; control food costs against budget while protecting quality.
• Implement and enforce food safety and sanitation standards, develop and maintain HACCP protocols ensuring full regulatory compliance.
• Partner directly with the General Manager and ownership on menu execution, staffing, operations and the direction of the business.
• Participate in a structured on-site training program as new kitchen systems and recipes are rolled out this winter.
• WHAT WE'RE LOOKING FOR
• Proven experience in a kitchen leadership role — Culinary Manager, Kitchen Manager, Sous Chef, or similar — with a genuine commitment to culinary excellence.
• A mindset built around consistency and precision — someone who takes real pride in executing a recipe exactly to standard, not in redesigning it.
• Mastery at every station within a kitchen.
• High Caliber leadership skills with a track record of training and motivating a team to a high standard.
• Solid grasp of food safety regulations, kitchen operations and back-of-house best practices.
• Comfortable analyzing reports with a mind toward budgeting, cost/labor control, calculating accurate recipe costs, and inventory management.
• Excellent organizational skills and the ability to stay composed and exacting in a fast-paced environment — high-volume, full-service experience is a strong plus.
• Someone who wants a real seat at the table, not just a shift to run — comfortable operating as a genuine partner to ownership and management.
• Flexibility to work evenings, weekends and holidays as needed.
• ServSafe certification (or willingness to obtain one).
• A genuine interest in pub or British/European cuisine is a plus, but not required.
• WHAT WE OFFER
• Competitive base salary of $90,000, plus a performance bonus — based on experience.
• A genuine leadership partnership with our GM and ownership — a real voice, not just a title.
• Structured, hands-on training as we roll out new kitchen systems and menu this winter.
• A close-knit, longstanding team and a genuine local institution to help build for the long term.
• [Add: health insurance / PTO / meals / comp tab.]